Newark, N.J. has a new Police Chief and HER name is Ivonne Román who is the first Latina to hold that position in the state’s largest city.
Chief Román’s goal is to bring down the crime rate in a city with the 4th highest homicide (murder-death) per capita in the US.
This is not a new challenge for Román, 41, who succeeded in lowering the crime statistics a full 13 percent during her tenure as the commanding officer of the city’s 2nd Precinct in 2012 and 2013.
“I want to replicate what I did in the 2nd Precinct by reaching out to community leaders and holding monthly meetings to create a net,” said the Puerto Rican officer.
Newark’s crime rate has actually dropped 21 percent however Chief Román wants to avoid reaching last year’s homicide record of 111 deaths, the highest since 1990.
Román said that she wants to recruit at least 100 new officers this year. At the moment, the Department has 996 members, some 700 fewer than when she entered the force in 1995.
“We need to work in a smart manner with the resources and tools we have available,” said the new police chief.
Mayor Luis Quintana pointed out that promoting Román to the commissioner position had nothing to do with her gender and everything to do with her skills.
“We live during a time when a person should be evaluated for the development of their work, not for their sex,” said Quintana.
Román, who holds the rank of captain, was born in Puerto Rico but her parents brought her to Newark when she was six months old. She graduated from Thomas Edison State College with a degree in Communications.
Román said that she wants to recruit at least 100 new officers this year. At the moment, the Department has 996 members, some 700 fewer than when she entered the force in 1995.
“We need to work in a smart manner with the resources and tools we have available,” said the new Police Chief.
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